Bvlgari CEO Jean-Christophe Babin said in an interview on Bloomberg TV that Bulgari is expanding its footprint in India to take advantage of strong growth and favorable demographics. The brand’s website lists 13 boutiques or authorized retailers in India.
“We see more luxury products coming in the coming months and years, which will push India into perhaps the top five or top eight markets in the world, if not the top three,” Babin said. said.
Global luxury goods giants from LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE to Kering SA saw sales in China slump in the first nine months of this year as the economy struggled to recover from the housing crisis.
Babin said Bvlgari intends to increase its e-commerce presence in China over the next two years, reaching more luxury customers in smaller cities rather than opening new brick-and-mortar stores. He said the country’s real estate oversupply and excess manufacturing capacity could take years to absorb before the economy recovers.
US President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to impose new tariffs on China, creating further uncertainty for the economy. However, Babin said he believed there would be little impact on the luxury goods sector as most of the fashion goods imported into China come from European countries such as France and Italy.
Babin downplayed the slowdown in the luxury goods industry, saying this year’s relative slump comes after an unusually strong 2023, with demand spurred by consumer savings accumulated during the COVID-19 lockdown period. He said the comparison with 2017 is one reason.
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LVMH brands have recorded “more than double-digit” growth driven by “natural upsells from customers,” CEO Jean-Christophe Babin said in an exclusive interview with BoF.
